world urban youth assembly 4

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WORLDURBANYOUTH

ASSEMBLY 4
http://www.unhabitat.org/


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WORLDURBANYOUTH

ASSEMBLY 4


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WORLD URBAN YOUTH ASSEMBLY2

Project:Participation of Youth representatives from developingCountries at the UN-Habitat World Urban Youth Assembly andWorld Urban Forum 6

Project Dates: 1 to 6 September 2013Project Cost:50,000 USD

Expected Objectives: To facilitate the participation of youngwomen and men from developing countries at the sixth session ofthe World Urban Forum and the World Urban Youth Assembly

Project funded by:Norwegian Agency for Development

Cooperation (NORAD)

First published in Nairobi in 2013 by UN-Habitat.Copyright United Nations Human Settlements Programme 2013

All rights reservedUnited Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)P. O. Box 30030, 00100 Nairobi GPO KENYATel: 254-020-7623120 (Central Office)www.unhabitat.org

HS/062/13E

DisclaimerThe designations employed and the presentation of the materialin this publication do not imply the expression of any opinionwhatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nationsconcerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area orof its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers ofboundaries.

Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect thoseof the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, the UnitedNations, or its Member States.

Excerpts may be reproduced without authorization, on condition thatthe source is indicated.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Principal Authors: Douglas Ragan, Mutinta Munyati and

Victoria Chebet

Author:Youth and Livelihoods Unit

Contributors:Akolade Aderibigbe, Catherine Tololwo, DanaPodmolikova, Edinilson Ferreira Dos Santos, Eric Luguya, James

Alcime, John Anugraha, Jon-Andreas Solberg, Kaja Weinandi,

Lorenzo Casullo, Lucinda Hartley, Maya Mboup, Mir Ghulam,

Murtaza Noonari, Paul Wambua, Philomena Modu, Rapheal Obonyo,

and Safira De La Sala

Editor:Tom Osanjo

Design and Layout:Andrew Ondoo

Administrative Support Team:Grace Nduru, Joyce David,

Jacqueline Macha and Mary Dibo

WORLD URBAN YOUTH ASSEMBLY


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3WORLD URBAN YOUTH ASSEMBLY

Background 5

Joint Opening session for Youth and GenderAssemblies 7

Statement by Dr. Joan Clos,UN-HabitatExecutive Director 9

Statement by Mr. Joo Scarpelini,Former UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board 11

Statement by Mr. Nicola Formichella,Parliamentarian, Italy 13

Statement by Hon. Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil

State Secretary for International Development,Ministry of Foreign Affairs Norway 15

Statement by Ms. Lakshmi PuriDeputy ExecutiveDirector, UN Women 17

Key messages at the joint opening ceremony 21

SESSION 1: Youth and the Prosperity of Cities.State of the Urban Youth Report 2012- 2013 23

SESSION 2: Youth Climate Change andGreen Jobs:from a Rio+20 perspective 27

SESSION 3: Information CommunicationTechnologies;Youth and Governance 31

SESSION 4: Youth Employment, Entrepreneurshipand Social Responsibility:The development ofinitiatives for Urban Youth 35

SESSION 5: Engaging Youth in Urban Waterand Sanitation 39

SESSION 6: Sports as a catalyst for change anddevelopment;harnessing the potential of sports

in urban areas 43

SESSION 7: Youth Employment, Trade andJob Creation 47

SESSION 8:State of the Field of Youth-LedDevelopment 51

SESSION 9:Equitable access to land -Strengthening youth engagement in providing tenure

security for all 55

SESSION 10: Engaging Young People in SustainableUrban Mobility 59

SESSION 11: Youth 21, Building for ChangeRoad map from Nairobi to Naples 63

SESSION 12: Building Safer cities with and foryoung people.Strategies to improve the quality

of life for urban young people 67

ANNEX 1: Statement by the Youth at the concludingsession of the Sixth World Urban Forum (WUF) on 5thSeptember 2012 70

ANNEX 2: Financial Report/List of Participants 73

Contents


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Delegates during the opening

session of the Youth Assembly,World Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy.

UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu


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The World Urban Forum (WUF) was established by the United

Nations to examine one of the most pressing problems

facing the world today- rapid urbanization and its impact on

communities, cities, economies, climate change and policies.

The Forum is organized and convened by the Executive

Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme

(UN-Habitat) pursuant to paragraph 10 of resolution 18/5 of

the Commission on Human Settlements and United Nations

General Assembly resolution 56/206.

The Forum is held in a different host city/country biennially

drawing a wide range of experts from every walk of lifeincluding Habitat Agenda Partners, government leaders,

ministers, mayors, diplomats, members of national, regional

and international associations of local governments, non-

governmental and community organizations, professionals,

academics, grassroots womens organizations, youth and

slum dwellers groups as partners working for a better Urban

Future. Since the first meeting in Nairobi, Kenya in 2002,

the Forum has grown in size and stature as it travelled toBarcelona in 2004, Vancouver 2006, Nanjing in 2008, and Rio

de Janeiro in 2010.

As an integral part of the Sixth Session of the World Urban

Forum, the fourth World Urban Youth Assembly was held in

Naples, Italy on 2 September 2012. The holding of the Youth

Assembly early in the programme of WUF provided youth

with the opportunity to deliberate on issues of particular

significance to them including safety, employment, job

creation, access to basic services, climate change and green

jobs and governance. The discussions also highlighted the

potential areas of youth contribution in the context of the

theme of the main forum The Urban Future.

The Youth assembly was attended by 380 people from around

the world including the members of the UN-Habitat Youth

Advisory Board, Urban Youth Fund, One Stop Youth Centre

Coordinators and representatives of youth led organizations.

The speakers included young people and specialists from theAcademia/Research, Inter-governmental organization, Local

government, National Government, United Nations, Non-

governmental organization, Private Sector, and Foundations

from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Latin American/

Caribbean, and Oceania

The Youth Assembly approved a WUF6 Youth Statement that

was read during the WUFs Closing Ceremony. A Naples 2012

Declaration on Urban Water and Sanitation and Urban Youth

and Mobility were approved by the Assemblys attendees.

UN-Habitat would like to thank the Government of Norway

and NORAD for its support of the Youth Assembly through

supporting the participation UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board

and developing countries youth representatives.

Background


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Opening session during the WorldUrban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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The Opening session was addressed by the Dr. Joan Clos,

Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Ms. Lakshmi Puri, Deputy

Executive Director of UN Women, Hon. Arvinn Eikeland

Gadgil, State Secretary for International Development,

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Norway, Mr. Joo Scarpelini, Former

UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board member, and Professor

Oyebanji Oyeyinka, Director, UN-Habitat among others.

Moderators:Mr. Bret Thiele; Economic, Social and Cultural

Rights

Co -Moderator: Sara Mohamed Ali, Plan International

delegate

Speakers

Dr. Joan Clos, Executive Director, UN-Habitat and

Under Secretary General of the United Nations

Ms. Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive Director,

UN Women

Hon. Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil, State Secretary forInternational Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

Norway

Ms. Giuseppina Tommasielli,Equal Opportunity and

Youth Policy Councillor of City of Naples

Ms Giovanna Del Giudice,Equal Opportunity and

Youth Policy Councillor of Provincia of Naples

Mr. Nicola Formichella, Parliamentarian

Mr. Joao Filipe Scarpelini, Former UN-Habitat Youth

Advisory Board

Joint Opening session forYouth and Gender Assemblies

Youth delegate from Sierra Leone display her massage during the fastAfrican Youth Assembly in Abuja, Nigeria 2011.

UN-Habitat/ Julius Mwelu


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UN-Habitat Executive Director

Dr Joan Clos addresses the delegates

during the opening session of theWorld Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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Statement by Dr. Joan Clos,UN-Habitat Executive Director

Dr. Clos welcomed the participants to the opening plenary.

He explained that UN-Habitat organizes the World Urban

Forum every two years to give partners a platform to

contribute and enrich the work of UN-Habitat. The outcomes

of the World Urban Forum feed into the Governing Council

that is also held every two years where Governments discuss

the administrative/programmatic work of UN-Habitat.

Dr. Clos noted that during the 20thCentury women rights

had undergone very steeping points and beginning with theaccession (this is not clear, please explain TO) in the social and

political acceptance in the society/advancement of women

rights. The Executive Director said it took quite a long time

to grant women political rights in most democracies. He

underscored the need to recognizing the immense efforts

that generations of women have provided to elevate the

civilization of humanity. In relation to urbanization, women

are very strong force in the urban setting, we are seeing a lotof women in social urban responsibilities; social movements

and we are seeing a lot of them fighting for the conditions

of people in the cities. The city provides women an additional

chance of women rights because they are out of the traditional

settings. We should recognize the fraternity between cities

and women rights, cities have a lot of problems but also

provide a lot of new opportunities.

Dr. Clos, speaking on the progress of youth emancipation

explained that in the traditional structural family settings,

young people had no powers but rather they were to obey,

and contribute to the new work force. He noted that lately,

this has changed as young people are beginning a process of

political, social and economic emancipation, and are beginning

to say things. Young people are becoming the majority of the

population in some regions for example in Africa the median

age is 18 years. This expresses a lot of things, a lot of young

population, need to develop their own lives, their futures

but unfortunately most of these young people do not have

decent livelihoods and jobs. He called upon the participants

to express their ideas in the assemblies and that UN-Habitat

will in turn relay the ideas to Governments, General Assembly

and the UN family.

In his concluding remarks, Dr. Clos noted that UN-Habitat

recognizes the special importance of youth involvement andgender issues which is why it created special departments

focusing on them.


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Former UN-Habitat Youth Advisory

Board Mr. Joo Scarpelini, addresses

delegates during the Youth Assemblyof the World Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy. UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu


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Mr. Scarpelini, highlighted the vital role that Forum plays

in creating a meaningful participation of young people in

UN-Habitats work. It provided a great platform to celebrate

the achievements and critically evaluate the progress of youthinvolvement in UN-Habitats work.

Mr. Joo further noted that although meaningful participation

of youth in programming is not easy, UN-Habitat has been

able to achieve key milestones through the implementation

of a number of initiatives throughout the world including:.

Urban Youth Fund:With the support of the Government

of Norway, UN-Habitat has been able to champion youth

participation through the funding of youth led projects

throughout the world. Through the funding young people

are taking the responsibility to improve their cities and are

working with local authorities.

Youth and Governance: He explained that through the

Youth Advisory Board, UN-Habitat has been including young

people in Governance. The Youth Advisory Board championsyouth work in UN-Habitat, with a particular emphasis on

mainstreaming youth across the agency and also by making

sure that projects implemented by UN-Habitat put youth in

the drivers seat.

One Stop Youth Centers:He noted that the One Stop Youth

Centers provide youth with the much needed safe spaces

in urban settings where they are able to meet and access

information and resources critical to youth-led development.

He explained that the model utilizes an integrated approach

to youth development and is implemented in partnership

with local government entities.

Research: UN-Habitat has also championed research

exploring the role of youth in sports, peace building, conflict

resolution, information and communication, job creation and

exploring the green economy alternatives. He emphasized the

need to partnering with young people directly implementingthese programmes in the grassroots.

Youth 21 is an initiative created to strengthen youth

participation not only within UN-Habitat but across the UN

system, trying to listen to what young people have to say

as well as challenging them to come up with their own

solutions/ideas. He further challenged member states to join

and create a platform to make the world a better place for

young people based on equal partnership.

Statement by Mr. Joo Scarpelini,Former UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board

We have come a long way in the process of

increasing the participation of young people

as Co-Partners. We are here to celebrate all

the achievements but also to critically look at

what we have achieved and what needs to be

done, Joo said


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Youth discussing at the UN-Habitat

exihibition area during the World UrbanForum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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Mr. Formichella, speaking on behalf of the President of the

Region of Campania (Mr. Stefano Caldoro) and the Italian

Parliament noted that the regions hosting of the World

Urban Forum meant being a major actor in the processes ofchange which involve the cities of world urbanization and

sustainable development which are very sensitive issues. It is

important that we involve younger generation in dealing with

these issues to be able to build their future in line with these

processes of modernization and urbanization, he said.

He explained that the region of Campania had devoted

suitable attention to these issues with targeted programmes

focusing on sustainable development such as the new

urban housing plans, social housing plans and landscapingcity improvements. Mr. Formichella, describing the major

programmes that have been recognized as best practices in

the European region, explained that the programmes aim to

improve the whole of the region of Campania. He stated that

the region had a major potential and that it can certainly deal

with the challenge of change effectively. He further noted

that the great challenge in the future of Italy and the region

was the new generational challenge and unemployment ofyoung people. He emphasized the need to provide young

people with the opportunity of implementing enterprises so

that they are able to see their own talents being recognized

and put in practice. Young people cannot however do this on

their own, but there is need to develop country systems and

institutions which can incentivize the development of these

ideas. To come out of this crisis, we believe that we need

to invest in young human resources by making it possible todevelop young people ideas through access to credit so that

new enterprises and developments are created.

Statement by Mr. Nicola Formichella,Parliamentarian, Italy

Volunteers posing for group photo during the World Urban Forum 6 in

Naples, Italy. UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu


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Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil,

Junior Minister of Foreign Affairs,

Norway addresses the delegates at

Youth Assembly during the World UrbanForum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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Hon. Gadgil started his statement with a special thanks to

the Government of Italy for hosting the WUF 6, UN-Habitat,

Youth Unit and Gender Units for organizing the special events

for youth and women.

He noted that we are now in the middle of the storm,

having to address some of the most important questions of

inequalities which destroy everything that society stands for.

He added that the mega trends in the world told us that what

we were going to discuss in those twin forums are among

the most important issues being handled on the international

stage. They include rising urbanization, youth bulge which

presents a lot of opportunities and some challenges, as well

as the issue human rights and women rights especially sexual

and reproductive rights.

Decrying the effects of inequality, Hon Arvin noted thatinequality is the venom of society; that destroys everything

that society stands for, including destroying the trust

between the people and as well as governments. He said that

inequality comes in three different forms including, secrecy,

exclusion and creed (greed?) The issue of inequality hasnt

been discussed on the international stage for a long time.

He emphasized the need to deal with the issue of inequality

through the following:

We need to shift the power and participation thats

never easy.

We have to realize that if those that we claim to

consult, do not feel like they have been consulted than

they were not. It is not about our feelings and opinions,

but theirs.

Those who want to be heard to trust their gut feelings

to stand up for themselves, raise their voices and speak

up. It does not help to stand by and wait for someone

else to do it.

He noted that panel debates alone are not going to save the

community from inequality, the real antidotes are building

personal relations and alliances. He called on the participants

to build personal relationships through networking and

building alliances, by using the spaces between the forumsto exchange ideas.

Statement by Hon. Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil State Secretary for International Development,Ministry of Foreign Affairs Norway


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Ms. Lakshmi Puri,

Deputy Executive Director, UN Women. WorldBank/Mikael Ulln


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Ms. Puri started her statement by thanking the Government

of Italy, UN-Habitat, and all the partners for organizing and

hosting this Gender and Youth Assemblies. She further

commended the organizers for giving priority to youth andgender as two central themes in the context of this World

Urban Forum.

Describing current global youth statistics, Ms. Puri noted that

the number of adolescents and young people worldwide is at

an all-time high. As the world is facing many interconnected

challenges including financial, economic, food, energy,

environmental and other crises, young women and men

represent a huge resource as agents of change for advancing

peace and security, development, human rights and gender

equality.

She further stated that young women and men are also

the most at risk with regard to changes in the economy,

increasing inequalities within and between countries, and the

impact of climate change. They continue to face challenges

and limitations to participate in decision-making processes

that affect their lives. This is an issue of denial of rights and a

loss of potential that the world cannot afford. Young people

face obstacles because of the lack of openness of political

processes, because of biased perceptions of their experience

and capacity, and lack of sensitivity to their demands and

priorities. Political parties, parliaments, governments or

international organizations are often led by older men (and

women) who are gatekeepers and who control access topolitical positions.

In conclusion, Ms. Puri noted that young women and men

are at the same time, part of the solution as demonstrated

in their commitment and capacity to organize, to advocate

for change and to contribute to all issues concerning themincluding political reform.

Statement by Ms. Lakshmi PuriDeputy Executive Director, UN Women

No consultation processes can be considered

as democratic and inclusive if they do not

reflect both young womens and mens views.

Young people must be able to move from

formal participation to the articulation of their

rights, needs, and expectations.

There will be no future without young women

and men shaping the development of cities

cities that have to be safe and sustainable for

all, that provide the resources for economic

empowerment, infrastructure and services-Ms. Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive

Director, UN Women



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The youth delegate Sara Mohamed Ali from Egypt Arab World

Spring talked about the challenges faced by young women

like her particularly growing up in informal settlements of the

city. Representing the girl child she talked about the issues

related to space, safety and skills development in not only in

the countries affected by Arab spring, but worldwide.

Other speakers including Ms. Giuseppina Tommasielli, Ms

Giovanna Del Giudice, and HH Sheikha Amthal Al-Ahmad Al-

Jaber Al-Sabah representing the the Emir of Kuwait reiterated

the need to place emphasis on investing in youth and provid-

ing mentorship

All girls should have a safe space toexpress themselves, their dreams and share

experiences, she concluded.

World Urban Youth Assembly delegates from Africa visiting the

exihibition stands during the World Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy. Julius Mwelu/UN-Habitat

Volunteers possing for group

photo during the World UrbanForum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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The delegates at the UN-Habitat

exhibition area during the WorldUrban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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The following issues were highlighted by the Speakers:

Cities should be designed and built for women and

youth so as to attract them.

Youth should be considered as assets as this has been

demonstrated by their role in the Middle Eastern

countries where they have been in the fore front driving

positive and democratic change

Young women in particular, face even greater barriers to

decent livelihoods, with poorer access to education and

jobs and often under threat of violence or harassment.

Partnership with private sector was emphasizedespecially to support small businesses for youth

development

Local authorities must seek to mainstream youth

issues into all aspects of their policies, planning and

implementation.

There is need to strengthen Youth Advisory Board as a

mechanism to engage youth with UN-Habitat Young people must be able to move from formal

participation to the articulation of their rights, needs,

and expectations.

There will be no future without young women and

men shaping the development of cities cities that

have to be safe and sustainable for all, that provide the

resources for economic empowerment, infrastructure

and services

Young people should have safe spaces to express

themselves, their dreams and share experiences

Young people should be provided with opportunities

to implement enterprises so that they are able to puttheir talents into practice. This can be enhanced by the

development of country systems and institutions that

incentivize these ideas are encouraged.

Strengthening partnership with young people

in the grass roots who are directly involved with

implementation of youth programmes.

Key messages at the jointopening ceremony

The delegates at the UN-Habitat exhibition area during the World

Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy. UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu



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WORLD URBAN YOUTH ASSEMBLY

State of Urban Youth Report

2012-2013; Youth in theProsperity of Cities.

UN-Habitat


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MODERATOR: Prof. Oyebanji Oyeyinka,Director, UN-Habitat

SPEAKERS

Mr. Erik Berg, Senior Advisor,

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway

Mr Anugraha John,

UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board, India

Mr Alessandro Sansoni,

President of Modavi Association

Introduction

The State of the Urban Youth Report 2012/2013 Youth

and the Prosperity of Citieswas presented by Prof Oyebanji

Oyeyinka. The report builds on the 2010/2011 edition,

Levelling the Playing Field Inequality of Youth Opportunity

and its insights into the state of urban youth He outlined the

key ideas that emerged from the report; in particular, the roleof Pre-Determined Circumstances in the wellbeing of young

people: young people have no control over several factors

including access to education, the location of birth, the

occupation of their mother and father. The factors influencing

the prosperity of young people in cities including equity,

quality of life, infrastructure, productivity and environmental

sustainability were highlighted. Much like the findings of the

last report, the 2012/2013 report continues to demonstrate

the fundamental importance of education to the development

of urban youth. The report recommends a better match

between skills and labour markets through vocational

training and the participation of the private sector. The reportsuggests that soft skills matter more in service-oriented

economies, and that young people in informal settlements

need entrepreneurial abilities, and their capacities must be

better geared to knowledge-intensive business services.

SESSION 1: Youth and the Prosperity of Cities:State of the Urban Youth Report 2012- 2013

The opening session of the Youth Assembly during the World Urban

Forum 6 in Naples, Italy. UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu



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Emerging Issues

1. The formal sector in the developing world is not able toprovide adequate employment opportunities for young

people seeking work and livelihood

2. When young people in urban areas do find jobs, they

are often in family-owned businesses, in small and low-

productivity firms, in domestic employment or in the

informal economy all of which offer low incomes and

little or no labour protection.

3. Unequal opportunities as well as the related issues of

employment and underemployment are by far part of

the greatest challenges faced by urban youth in the 21 st

century.

4. Young people have no control over factors leading

to access to education, like the location of birth, the

occupation of their mother and father etc.

5. The degree of outcome inequality that defines youth

exclusion or inclusion in urban life is highly related to

the (un)equal opportunities that occur in successive life

stages.

Recommendations

It was recommended that reports produced by

UN-Habitat that are relevant for youth, be made moreyouth friendly, including:

Strategically distributing the reports

Strategically organized for web distribution

Organized for learning

Written in a format/language that is accessible to

young people

Offline components be made more available as

many young people dont have internet access

UN-Habitat has become very effective in its youth

programs. This has been largely funded by the

government of Norway. The government of Norway

calls on other institutions, governments and private

sector to contribute to the youth program of UN-Habitat

Students in a technical education program supported by the World Bank

in Antioquia, Colombia. Charlotte Kesl World Bank.


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Opening session of the Youth Assembly during the

World Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy.




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Impressions from Youthblastthe

conference of youth for Rio+20.

Youthblast/Andrea Arzaba


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MODERATOR: Mr. John Mwaura

SPEAKERS

Hon. Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil, State Secretary for

International Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

Norway

Prof. Mark Swilling, Division Head of Sustainable

Development at the University of Stellenbosch and

Academic Director of the Sustainability Institute, South

Africa

Mr. Marco Gioia, Member of Friarielli RibelliAssociation

Ms. Safira de la Sala, UN-Habitat Youth Advisory

Board, Czech Republic

Highlights of the discussion

The future of hundreds of millions of people in urban areas

across the world will be affected by the different impactsof climate change such as weather related disasters, food

and water insecurity, rising level of insecurity and increased

vulnerability of urban economy. At the same time nearly

90 million young people around the world are unemployed

and additional 300 million are working poor, in unskilled,

insecure employment and in unsatisfactory conditions. The

largest number of youth in this situation is in global South,

especially in Africa. One of the outcomes of Rio+20 is the

recognition of the need for a global strategy on youth and

employment in the context of green economy policies. Rio+

20 calls on all governments to address the global challenges

of youth employment by developing and implementingstrategies and policies that provide young people everywhere

with access to decent and productive work. The creation

of green jobs, such as work in agricultural, manufacturing,

research and development, administrative and service

activities that contribute substantially to preserving or

restoring environmental quality.

SESSION 2: Youth Climate Change andGreen Jobs:from a Rio+20 perspective

Youthblastthe conference of youth for Rio+20.

Youth policy.org



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In this context Climate Change mitigation and adaptation

measures offer significant opportunities to create employment

in green economy sectors. The objectives of the dialogue was

to investigate how Climate Change affects the urban youth

and their environment and explored how policy and the

private sector can facilitate and promote green jobs for young

people.. This session provided participants with a platform

for peer to peer learning and the exchange of experience,

knowledge and ideas. By identifying new perspectives and

opportunities, the dialogue broadened the horizon for a

further debate on this topic.

Emerging Issues

The dialogue provided a variety of perspectives,

presenting the point of views of policy, science and civil

society, showing practical solutions and discussing the

challenges to mainstream a sustainable living style.

In the context of sustainable city development it is

necessary to rethink urban infrastructure in a more

sustainable flow of resources to improve flexibility,

adaptability and capacity, especially in jobs, mobility and

food security.

Youthblast (the conference of youth for Rio+20) plenary in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. youthpolicy.org


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Ms. Laura Gioia, the Urban Activist from Naples,

discussing how urban agriculture creates employment

and solves the problem of food insecurity in a

sustainable way, explained the positive social and

ecological impacts of urban agriculture and raised the

need for more people taking action in this field. The

upcoming movement of urban agriculture organizes

people around the natural system that connect to

survival within the city. Moreover these activities rebuild

new social relationships and create a new way of

understanding the nature within the city.

The panelists suppose that social media and the

internet will be one of the main instruments to connect

the movement and to mainstream ideas. Moreover

it is necessary that local, national and international

authorities provide the right meeting spaces for the

movements to enhance networking and cooperation.

Recommendations:

To handle the challenge of mobilizing young people for

more engagement, the panelists pointed out the need

for more networking and exchange of ideas for example

based on an internet platform or on networking events.

Creation of a more intensive dialogue between civil

society and politicians. The way forward should be

based on a more practical and local way of thinking.

It is important for young people to learn practical skills

such as farming. Schools and universities could play an

important role by encouraging young people to learn

practical skills and to take action.

Policy and local authorities facilitate spaces for

innovation and support the new movements. There

is a need to discuss how these social movements can

be better integrated in governance, which could be

a further debate, especially with a regard to more

collaboration between social movements and politics.

National and international policy makers need to

develop a global strategic plan for green jobs and to

start a discussion between employers, governance, civil

society and private sector. The world community should

find a solution for a greening of all jobs and to make

them accessible for the youth.

There is a need of a deeper understanding of the owncountry and the complexity of our city systems

Orientation session during RIO+20 Youthblast conference inRio de Janeiro, Brazil. youthpolicy.org



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The event organizers and the

volunteers preparing translation

devices in preparation of the

sessions during the World UrbanForum 6 in Naples, Italy.



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The objectives in this session were to explore the potential

for improved urban governance that has arisen from the

intersection of youth, ICT and urbanization and to identify

the priority areas of support and innovations for enhancing

youth inclusive in urban governance through the use of ICT.

SPEAKERS

Ms. Daniella Ben Attar,

International Project Development & Management

Ms. Jamie Lundine,Spatial Collective

Dr. Tim Campbell, UrbanAge Institute

Ms. Annalisa Buffardi,Lecturer, Naples University

Ms. Carole MacNeil,MacNeil and Associates

Highlights of the discussion:

In her opening remarks, Dr. Kirabo Kacyira, the Deputy

Executive Director of UN-Habitat talked about the impact

of the growth in ICT, youth population, and the urbanpopulation on urban governance. Sharing her experience as

a former Mayor, Ms. Kaycira noted that young people want

to be engaged in making their cities work and expect urban

governments to harness the potential of cities. Accessing

more information and being able to connect quickly

with other youth has made young urban citizens eager to

transform their relations with public institutions and have a

say in how education, employment, land, housing, safety, andmany urban basic services are designed and delivered. She

called on the participants to identify priority areas of support

and innovations for enhancing youth inclusion in urban

governance through the use of ICT.

Ms. Daniella Ben Attarnoted that there has been various

research findings and discussion over the past two years in

relation to the interconnectedness of youth, governance,

and ICT. One of the organizations leading research in this

field is International Project Development and Management.

The research led to the development of four pillars of ICT:

Adapting technology to impact, balancing inclusiveness

and responsiveness, public openness through technology,

and engaging citizens as partners in urban governance. The

question many people are asking revolves around the outcome

of adding the youth dimension. Daniella noted that the reality

is that youth are leading the way, and government is lagging

behind in developments. ICT has the potential to answer

the how question as we see that more youth are using the

internet, low cost mobile development is rapidly increasing,

and there is innovative application with narrow based social

networking such as Facebook Zero and Gmail SMS.

Ms. Jamie Lundine,co founder of the Spatial collective

shared her organizations experiences in the mapping activities

in Nairobi. She explained that in 2009, Kibera was mapped

through an initiative known as Map Kibera. The initiative had

a strong focus on open data and young people. Youth were

trained in hand held devices and played an integral role in the

mapping of Kibera. The same methodology is currently being

implemented in the slum of Mathare.

SESSION 3: Information Communication

Technologies;Youth and Governance



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Tim Campbellwas able to provide a strong perspective from

the world of governance to the discussion. According to him,

young people are over-whelming their local governments

who remain not fully ready and committed to technological

revolutions. Central governments however are more ready as

can be evidenced by national initiatives. A solution proposed

is the use of local governments to carry out national initiatives

and more collaboration in that domain.

Analisa Buffardidiscussed the challenges in ICT integration

being a weak educational system in many countries. She

stressed the need to train youth and the older generation

on ICT and the role it can play. Carole MacNeil stressed that

society should view youth engagement as benefiting everyone

and reemphasized ICT not being the answer but being a tool.

Digital Storytelling Track: Debate and Citizen Journalism Camp in Kyrgyzstan. World Bank


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Maya Mboupdiscussed how mobile technology is no longer

just about making calls but also as a platform to accessing

important information regarding health care, political parties.

She emphasized the importance of leveraging this with

content in the areas available to youth.

Emerging Issues

The following emerging issues were indentified in the session.

A general consensus from the speakers was that youthhave certain needs that should be taken into account. A

daily bond with the government should thus be fostered

which can be heightened through the use of social

media to tune into youth discussions around those

needs.

Policy activity tends to come from the national levels

of government and thus issues pertaining to localities

tend to be lost in translation. A new solution to thisis encouraging governments the integration of local

governments in the delivery of ICT initiatives.

Furthermore champions should be identified within

governments and a larger strategy for change

developed rather than concentrated focus on

technology which is just a tool.

Attention to the divide between rural and urban

areas should also be considered when developing ICT

strategies especially in developing countries.

ICT can be used to engage youth as partners in Urban

Governance as evidenced in an ICT training project

carried out in Sri Lanka which led to a great impact on

youth there.

Young people are over-whelming their local

governments who remain not fully ready and committed

to technological revolutions. The solution is to use

local governments to carry out national initiatives and

strengthen collaboration with young people.

Recommendations:

Developing new programs for youth focused on ICT

training

Setting the opportunity of the mobile ICT revolution foryouth in developing countries & cities,

Develop new spaces for youth engagement

Extend the impact of social media on local governance,

Build the capacities of local government in the field of

ICT

To consider strategies for gainful employment in the ICT

field.

Youth are chanting the slogan Build the youth Build the nation, destroythe youth destroy the nation during the Africa youth assembly in Abuja,Nigeria 2011. UN-Habitat/Julius Mwelu



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A student does arc welding,

Afghanistan. Sofie Tesson-Taimani Films/World Bank


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Youth unemployment is one of the ruling ideas of todays

world, applicable to all corners of the globe. The problem

is not well tackled by existing governments and structures

as they all like to pass on the responsibility to solve the

issue. Employability, entrepreneurship and education are

thus extremely important in tackling the problem and

finding solutions. Since young people are more affected by

unemployment than ever, they should have an opportunity to

create viable solutions to this problem.

The speakers shared their experiences of how they aredirectly engaging young people in the process of tackling

unemployment and with employment opportunities.

SPEAKERS

Mr. S. Ananthakrishnan,

Former Youth Empowerment Advisor, UN-Habitat

Mr. Michele Capasso,

Architect and President of Fondazione Mediterraneo

Mr. Erik Von Thorn,

SMART Cities

Mr. Robert Barnard,

DECODE

Highlights of the Discussion

Mr. Erik Berg spoke about big corporations and their way ofstimulating and bringing out opportunities for young peo-

ple. He then introduced one of the most successful initiatives

in Latin America, a project called Smart Cities that runs in

Mexico. Young people from all around the country are called

in a technological centre where they are challenged to think,

create and develop new and exciting web (and mobile) ap-

plications to improve cities. The projects offer scholarships

for few outstanding candidates to develop their applicationsfurther and possibly start their own business out of it. Appli-

cations they developed covered broad range of issues, includ-

ing transformation of public spaces, change of attitudes of

citizens towards the urban issues, motivating people to take

active past in social change and become active citizens or pro-

moting democracy and active participation of young people

in local governance.

Robert from Decode introduced their new venture, theYouthful Cities. This global initiative is first and foremost

trying to change the negative association with the word

youth. Young people are perceived by many as unreliable

and immature kids that need a guiding hand, not a power.

Yet young people are critical to economic development of

the cities and thus should be considered when making any

decision on shaping or running urban settings. Youth Cities

engage young people to join the efforts to make the cities

SESSION 4: Youth Employment, Entrepreneurshipand Social Responsibility:The development ofinitiatives for Urban Youth



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more liveable, playful and with employment opportunities.

Any city would like to be seen in this light, yet not many are.

The project is analysing cities based on these criteria and issuggesting ways to build cities with them in mind.

Michele Capasofrom the Fondazione Mediterraneo stressedthe importance of a change from the power of law to law of

power for youth. Global economic systems have to be placing

the youth economy in the centre of their policies. Not only

has it to become the priority, it has to be beneficial to all

young people.

Doug Ragan spoke about the Youth programmes thatshould be in place to improve the livelihoods of youth,

especially those in slums and unplanned settlements, throughtheir inclusion in governance and the social and economic

life of cities. Youth unemployment is growing rapidly which

can mean two things: it can be a positive force which will

lead to economic boom or, it can be a negative force to

overthrow governments out of rage and dissatisfaction with

the situation.

Emerging Issues

Young people need to be challenged to come up

with issues and their solutions. They should be part of

every step of city transformation and should be given

a space to act quickly and responsibly as well as share

knowledge and experiences.

The current world allows young people (and not only

them) to move freely. They have way more options to

travel or change cities (even countries) than any other

generation before. This can be a massive advantage

when approached responsibly. Young people need to

man-up a little and step outside their comfort zones if

they want to see a change.

Young people should be viewed as assets and as

capable citizens that are not hindered by their age

or inexperience. Media can help substantially with

changing the image.

The creativity of young people should be taken

advantage of, as the youngsters taking part in the

project proved to all around.

We need to focus on finding interventions that can be

possibly replicable around the world, not trying to find a

job for every young person out there.

With increasing urbanization and poverty in urban areas, UrbanAgriculture is providing food and jobs in Bugesera, Rwanda. Julius Mwelu/UN-Habitat


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Youth unemployment is growing rapidly and its force

can have positive (economic boom) as well as negative

(overthrown of government) impacts.

We need to focus on finding ways of making all tools

available to young people around the world. Some parts

of the world have a huge problem with no access to

internet or other useful devices of the modern era.

We also have to break the vicious circle of unpaid

labour of young people. No revenue, no business and

no market. It is a very dangerous territory and thereforeUN-Habitat in cooperation with ILO has developed a

number of tools to help boost local economies.

Education has been given a particular importance. There

has to be enough secondary and tertiary educational

facilities with an emphasis on skills available in cities.

Youth entrepreneurship should also be encouraged as

it is proven that businesses started and run by young

people often employ other young people from the city.

Policy makers should not underestimate the power of

youth and should help to improve their public image

and perception. Young people have to be seen as an

asset, not a burden. Their age should be seen as an

advantage as their minds are fresh and uncorrupted by

years of fighting for better lives.

Youth-led development should be more widely

promoted as a successful template for others. Media

can play a substantial role in this process of image

transformation.

Recommendations

Global economic system has to start placing youtheconomy at the centre of their politics and challenge the

current attitude and lack of interest. There has to be a

shift from the power of law to law of power for youth.

Young people should stand up and challenge

governments that are not doing their job right.

It would also be extremely helpful to agree on a

common definition of youth within international

institutions.

CSR departments of companies should go beyond

the traditional charity work and really focus on young

people as they can bring energy, vibrancy, ideas and

creativity to companies. CSR in itself is not a solution.

As a starting point, it would be helpful to unify a

definition of youth. Different institutions, governments

and cultures see the age limit differently. In thesedefinitions, the age brackets differ but start from

anywhere from 14 to 32 or up to 35 years. (really?)A

common definition would make any intervention easier

to implement across multiple territories.



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A women empties water

at Pidie, Indonesia.

UN-Habitat/Veronica Wijaya


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Access to safe water and sanitation is a major challenge facing

many communities in the developing world. Although some

progress has been made towards meeting the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs) targets for Water and Sanitation

(watsan), because of the rapid urbanization and increase in the

number of urban poor, the number of urban residents using

unimproved water sources or without improved sanitation

facilities has actually increased between 1990 and 2010

(UNICEF, WHO, 2012). A panel consisting of policy makers

and youth leaders in the sector presented case studies that

highlighted examples where youth have made a difference in

ensuring access to sustainable water and sanitation services,

and suggested ways to scale up such practices.

This session analyzed the global situation and trends in urban

watsan services and the role of youth in improving access

to watsan, particularly for the urban poor. It provided policy

makers and youth the opportunity to deliberate on issues of

urban water and sanitation.

SPEAKERS

Ms Joyeta Goswami,International Research and

Development Fellow/Government Relations and

Advocacy, Habitat for Humanity International

Mr. Lovy Rasolofomanana,Country Representative,

WaterAid, Madagascar

Mr. Sushil Gyewali,Executive Director, TownDevelopment Fund, Nepal

Ms. Anna Crispo,Researcher in Public Health of

ANGIR-Napolitan Association of Young Researchers

Dr. P. Jayapal,Executive Director, Housing and Urban

Development Corporation (HUDCO)

HE Dr. Biunchanh Sinthavong,Member of the

National Assembly and Vice-Minister of Public Works

and Transport, Lao PDR.

SESSION 5: Engaging Youth in Urban Waterand Sanitation

Participants of World Urban Youth Assembly in Naples, Italy.

UN-Habitat/Victoria Chebet



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Emerging Issues

Policy development and decision making for pro-poorapproaches mainstreaming water and sanitation in

government policies and strategies.

Implementation, including financing Youth are willing

contribute with labor to reduce investments costs,

support savings groups and other financing models;

encourage repayment from communities.

Education and awareness - Schools are prefect entry

points for youth (also engaging children) to promote

wider awareness on water and sanitation at the

community level.

Recommendations

Continued dialogue is required among the youth,

government and other actors considering the youth as

agents of change.

Considered and engaged youth as key stakeholder

in decision making, implementation and monitoring

processes.

Capacity building and youth empowerment are critical

particularly through existing youth groups.

Youth need to be more involved in water and sanitation

issues at all levels (see above)

Recognition that water and sanitation should not

be viewed as expenditures but more as investments,

and not only physical investments but also social and

economic investments.

There is need to carry forward the discussion with

potential partnership and agencies to follow up on the

outcomes and declaration of the session, and where

possible include it in the program design.

A draft of the Naples 2012 Declaration on Urban Water and

Sanitation was presented at the session.

Unidentified African children fetch water many miles away from home

and do not attend school to help their family in Lusaka, Zambia

Shutterstock

Unidentified African children fetch water many miles

away from home and do not attend school to help


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away from home and do not attend school to help

their family in Lusaka, Zambia. Shutterstock



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Participating teams in the Habitat Cup

during the World Urban Forum 6 in

Naples, Italy. Victoria Chebet/UN-Habitat


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Governments and private organizations have long been using

sport as a tool in global development because of its potential

to transform lives in unique and powerful ways. In fact,

there are few areas in development where sport cannot be

used as a platform to strengthen communities and improve

lives. Through role models, sports can promote leadership

and reach out to youth. Adding an educational message to

sports or sporting events can raise awareness on societal

issues. Sport can reach a much larger audience and can be

used as a powerful platform for youth development, to create

jobs, encourage school attendance, improve peoples health,

support economic development, promote gender equality,

and raise sustainable urban development awareness. Sport

has the power to change the world, create hope, speak to

youth in a language they can understand and laughs in the

face of all types of discrimination. Moreover, well-designed

sport policies at the local, national and international level

can contribute to achieving international development goals,

including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and

Habitat Agenda.

The speakers at this session analyzed the role of sports in

harnessing sustainable development and its catalytic role

causing social change.

SPEAKERS

Ms. Solveig Straume,Author UN-HabitatUrban Youth and Sports for Development Report

Mr. Anders Levinsen,Founder Cross Cultures

Tommasina Pianese, Research in Sports Marketing

University of Naples Parthenope

SESSION 6: Sports as a catalyst for change anddevelopment;harnessing the potential of sportsin urban areas

UN-Habitat Executive Director Dr Joan Clos addressing the mediaafter the Habitat Cup in Naples, Italy. Cubo Creativity Design/Fondazione Campania dei Festival



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Emerging Issues

During the breakout sessions, the participants highlighted the

role that Sports plays in the Society.

Sports create jobs

Sports brings people together

Sport creates community

Sports prevents crime

Sports creates leadership and team spirit

It is a way of entertainment, and is good for health

Recommendations

Involve multiple stakeholders sports in programmes

including youth; governments to provide land for and

create sports spaces, develop sports policies; Schools

and communities (teachers, parents, families); and

Sports clubs and organizations (volunteers, coaches,

hard and soft infrastructure)

Establish sports facilities and organization that are

managed by youth for youth - Establish governance and

physical infrastructures by letting the young people run

their own sports organizations

Participating teams in the Habitat Cup during the World Urban Forum 6 in Naples, Italy. Cubo Creativity Design/Fondazione Campania dei Festival


46/74


Encourage young people to learn through practice

Support (financial, mentoring, education etc.)- Society

should provide all round support to the young people

Engaging the community to give room for organized

sports to raise funds to further the opportunities that

sports give for development

Introduce sports to organizations that are outside sports

e.g. UN-Habitat where they can push for policies for

governments to provide separate budgets for sports

Young people need empowerment/physical mentorship

(To the young people, sports should have a meaning,

motivation and reward and the need for it be created)

Training session of the girls football team from Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya. Julius Mwelu/UN-Habitat



47/74

Municipal workers lay asphalt

in the Atanasio Tzul avenue,

zone 12, Guatemala Ciy, Guatemala. World Bank/ Maria Fleischmann


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The global youth population has risen to 1.2 billion, with

majority of them residing in developing countries (UN-

Habitat Youth Report 2010/2011). While the global youth

population has risen by 10.5% over the past decade, youth

employment has only grown by 0.2%, which has resulted in

vast numbers of unemployed youth both in the developing

and developed economies. According to the International

Labor Organization (ILO) young people are three times more

likely to be unemployed than adults and over 75 million

youth worldwide are looking for work. In recent years, the

impacts on the world economy caused by structural reforms,

technology advancements and globalization have further

severely hampered youth employment. According to the ILO

2012 Report on World Youth Employment Trends, the

global youth unemployment rate under the age of 25 rose

to a new high of 12.7%. These figures are projected not to

improve before at least 2016.

This session analyzed global employment trends situation and

the role of local, national, and the private sector in generating

jobs particularly for the urban youth.

MODERATOR: Mr. John Anugraha, UN-HabitatYouth Advisory Board

SPEAKERS

Mr. Gulelat Kebede,Branch Coordinator,

Urban Economy Branch, UN-Habitat

Mr. Jiang Mingjun,Director General,

International Eco Safety Cooperative Organization

Ms. Shan Fengping,Deputy Director General,

International Eco Safety Cooperative Organization

Mr. Giovanni Grillo,President of the Youth Forum,

Region Campania

Other Contributors

Lin Dongmei

Gao Qinghong

Li Porong

Highlights of the discussion

Jiang Mingjun speaking on youth employment and

mobility underscored the importance of youth creativity and

imagination in the development of employment opportunities

and sustainable development. He described the successfulstrategies undertaken by the International Eco Safety

Cooperative Organization (IESCO) to contribute to urban

poverty elimination including the construction of a new village

Xingshisi in China that helped improve the living conditions

of residents and the rural economy and establishing the

International Youth Employment and Skil ls Training Centre.

SESSION 7: Youth Employment, Trade and

Job Creation



49/74

Shan Fengping highlighted the vital role of the media inpromoting youth development. She explained that young

people are generally confronted by a paradox which includessuffering from unemployment and the media playing a strong

role in popularizing scientific knowledge, and guiding the

perception of social values. Therefore the media environment

is another important factor to be considered while speaking

on the youth ideologies, social attitudes, and outcomes.

Lin Dongmei, speaking on the creation of jobs through

innovative technologies outlined the case of JUNCAO

Technology that they have been using to leverage grassroots to

drive economic growth in China. The technology is renewable

and highly effective and can be used to grow mushrooms.

JUNCAO also provides training, education, research, and

facilitation of projects and have centers in training centers

in three countries: Fiji, Rwanda, and South Africa. Currently

training in JUNCAO technologies is available in 11 languages

including English, Japanese, Portuguese, Zulu, and Russian.

Gao Qinghong explained how IESCO has adopted paper

cutting technologies that have created employment

opportunities for youth. Paper cutting is one of the longest

standing traditional folk arts and crafts of the Chinese people.

Her organization has trained more than 400 people in paper

cutting. To expand job opportunities for the youth and help

them to find their niche in society, Qinghong Paper-cut has

carefully orchestrated the plan to set up InternationalTraining Base of Techniques and Skills and Cultural

Initiative Industry Demonstration Park of Youth Organization,

Datong, China together with International Ecological Safety

Cooperative Organization which has been committed to

protecting the rights and interests of women and children,

youth training and environmental development and Datong

Finance and Accounting School.

Li Porongemphasized the value of college students in the

employment market because they are educated, ambitious,

and are looking for jobs to launch their careers, and the factthat jobs to them arent just about money. She encouraged

young people to work in rural areas to help develop local

resources, attract entrepreneurs to create businesses, and to

also take the stress out of the cities. Consequently, students

moving to rural areas can help solve the following 6 issues:

Job shortage can be decreased as rural based job

opportunities are leveraged

Promote youth to stay within their local communities

Decrease the stress from rapid urbanization in big cities

such as traffic, unemployment, education, safe cities

and population.

It can foster entrepreneurship

The students can help develop local resources

The students stepping in to rural areas will help increasethe prosperity in such regions

Emerging Issues

The following issues emerged from the discussion.

Creativity and imagination of youth are extremely

important with it comes to development of employment

opportunities.

There are various opportunities for job creation in

both rural and urban areas as can be seen by the

many opportunities leveraged by the International Eco

Safety Cooperative Organization (IESCO), JUNCAO

Technologies and other organizations.


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Young people are generally confronted by a paradox

which includes a new generation suffering from

unemployment and the media playing a strong rolein popularizing scientific knowledge, and guiding the

perception of social values.

The media environment is an important factor to be

considered while speaking on youth ideologies, social

attitudes, and outcomes in society.

Not all sectors contribute to creating jobs therefore the

number of the working poor remains staggeringly high.

If job creation does not increase then a large number of

the working poor will remain vulnerable.

The ratio of youth unemployment to adult

unemployment can be as high as to two to three times

in severity.

Recommendations

There is need to assess the current skills and matching

those to available jobs.

Make sure policies are supportive of informal activities

such as fair and urban policies, and supportive public

services.

Connect rural youth to urban youth

Fund youth to undertake various projects

Develop working networks and co-host an assembly

with UN-Habitat on ecological safety and promotion of

green employment.

Maintain a list of ecological safety and youth

employment initiatives and publish a bilingual magazine

called Unity which will highlight important information

on youth unemployment.

Release timely information on youth employment to

guide decisions on location based development.

Run youth training centers on climate change,

ecological training, and ecological agriculture.

Create new green jobs- pledge to create 20,000 new

job opportunities in the coming 5 years.

Actively pushing towards a green economy

Encouraging youth to seek out opportunities in rural

areas

Create an annual report on youth unemployment

African Urban Youth Assembly Participants register at the Shehu MusaYarAdua Centre Abuja, Nigeria 2011. UN-Habitat/Julius Mwelu



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Mohammed Abdel Ati Alhuseins is a

successful business owner in Kassala

the capital of Kassala State in eastern

Sudan. He bought himself one brick-

making machine and used a microfinace

loan to purchase the rest. World Bank/ Salahaldeen Nadir


52/74


The term Youth-Led Development was coined in the

process leading up to the World Urban Forum in Vancouver,

Canada in 2006. Where is the State of the Field of Youth-

Led development today? Through three research reports (The

Challenge and the Promise of Youth-led Development, The

State of the Field of Youth-Led Development and The ICT,

Urban Governance and Objectives) the Youth Unit in UN-

Habitat gives a broad overview of the field and where the

leading edge is at the moment. Preliminary research from

ongoing unpublished research will as well be presented. The

second initiative presented in this session is the Hack Day

Initiative from Latin America. In this innovative and unique

approach, the projects gather youth interested in programming

and improving their community. Anyone interested in youth-

led development and youth empowerment should not

miss this unique opportunity. The session explored ways of

generating employment opportunities for youth especially in

urban areas.

MODERATOR: Joo Scarpelini

SPEAKERS

Ms. Carole MacNeil,

Fulbright Scholar and Principal, Macneil and Associates

Mr. Douglas Ragan,

Unit Leader, Youth and Livelihoods, UN-Habitat

Ms. Daniella Ben Attar,

Head, International Project Development and

Management

Mr. Erik Vittrup Christensen,

Senior Human Settlements Officer with UN-Habitats

Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Mr. Willem Van Vliet, Director, Children,

Youth and Environments Centre (TBC)

SESSION 8:State of the Field of Youth-Led

Development

Shelter construction , Washington. D.C. USA. UN-Habitat/Nathan Kihara



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Emerging Issues

Ninety percent of youth-led organizations count on

adults support. 33% are own funded, which shows

that the people involved are really caring for the subject,

but differently from what we can assume, they are notonly looking for financial support, but also (almost 50%)

for capacity building and monitoring. The organizations

are closer to the national government, so its necessary

to bring it together to the local level policy as well.

Mobile technology has shown to be the most powerful

tool, especially when associated with technologies that

are not the latest in the market, which allows access to

a larger part of the population.

For the current generation (2008), ICT is also reducing

the gender inequality. Finally, hackathons are getting

more space, and are being stimulated by the provision

of funded incubators (6-months scholarships).

Recommendation

Continue to monitor Youth-led organizations, and improving

the support by knowing their demands

Participants during the WUF6 in Naples, Italy. Victoria Chebet/UN-Habitat


54/74


Youth Vocation Training in Kabul, Afghanistan.

UN-Habitat



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Map Kibera project is to improve

living conditions in the Kenyas

largest informal settlements. UN-Habitat


56/74


Land tenure for all is a central issue in the dialogue for

creating equitable and prosperous cities. Conventional urban

planning and land administration has proven to be inefficientin preventing shrinking public spaces, incorporating the

continuum of land rights and ensuring inclusion of social

groups, such as youth, in decision making processes. Youth

represent both a target group for land access and drivers

of change within the land sector. The range of land rights

that youth require in the city can be clustered as: economic

rights of land for livelihoods; work, economic assets, income

generation and access to services; social rights of land forshelter and family life, education, recreation and sports,

parks and health facilities; cultural rights such as land for

community events, religious practices, entertainment and

cultural/arts events and civil and political rights such as land

allocated for youth projects, information, meeting places and

advocacy. A recent scoping study conducted by The Global

Land Tool Network (www.gltn.net) has highlighted that

there is a significant gap in literature and research on youthdimensions of land, in particular by youth themselves.

This session highlighted key aspects of the Youth-Land

connection with discussants on their specific entry points

to create awareness about the importance of the youth

dimensions to land.

MODERATOR: Jean DuPlessis

SPEAKERS

Kate Fairlie,

Young Surveyors Network, Australia

Jemma Donaghey,

International Tenants Union, Australia

Luisa Marro,

Member of ITER- Councillor for

Youth Policy of Casoria town.

Catherine Nimusiima,

Slum Dwellers Federation, Uganda

Deena Ledger,

Landesa, USA

Sosina Bezu,

Norwegian University of Life Sciences/

University of Addis Ababa

Siraj Sait,

University of East London, UK

SESSION 9:Equitable access to land -

Strengthening youth engagement in providingtenure security for all



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Emerging Issues

The following emerging issues were identified during the

discussion focusing on the issues of youth and land.

Youth engagement in land policy discussion and land

programmes is pivotal. Youth need to be engaged andinvolved in the processes even though they dont have a

stake in the land as owners.

Youth as tenants is important. Tenure needs to be

a legitimate option that can provide security for the

people who choose that option including youth. This is

also in line with the growing recognition of a range of

human rights.

It also became clear that the issue of land and

tenure security is underlying many other issues of

marginalization and poverty; such as education, poverty,

employment and gender. Its important to educate girls

and boys on equality, as in many places the inheritance

goes directly to male members to the family. Also wemust educate our children on land issues (as recently

happened with financial education to kids- where was

this done?TO).

Youth need to take an active role in development of

land tools, both as professionals and as community

members. This was highlighted by representatives

from both the Young Surveyors network as well as the

Uganda Slum Federation that has piloted the SocialTenure Domain Model in Mbale in Eastern Uganda.

Speakers at the Equitable access to land - Strengthening youth engagement in providing tenuresecurity for all session during the WUF6 in Naples, Italy. Victoria Chebet/UN-Habitat


58/74


Policy makers need to make greater efforts to include

youth in discussions and debates. More productive

discussions on youth and land dimension can be donebetween groups/ countries facing similar barriers to

providing security of tenure. (e.g. city to city, country to

country).

It is important to collect best practices on how to involve

youth in these processes. Developing land policies and

land tools without the active engagement of youth can

lead to wrong assumptions about what youth want and

need.

From the discussion it was concluded that there needs

to be a two pronged approach. Youth need more

information about land and how to protect it and learn

to use the land as a resource for economic and social

activities. From African discussants the issue of youth

needing to take more responsibility and be less wreck

less with the land was raised. It is clear that there is a

continued inter generational communication gap.

The resource and capacity typical of youth must be

used and valorized by public organs. With regard to

public policies, it was pointed out that the Australian

government has a program on affordable housing for

youth.

Recommendations Organise and advertise the competition youth and

land: what is your story? (We cant advertise what has

not been organised. TO)

Organize meeting between GLTN partners who are

leading in land tool development and youth champions

for land.

Participants in the meeting were urged to follow up

with youth participants who were particularly active in

the debate (including YAB and former YAB members) tocreate a core group of Youth Champions for Land

Initiate the process of defining youth in the context

of land

Develop a quick guide to Youth and Land basing on the

inputs of the speakers and the discussions.

Continue with the debate, for both rural and urban

property. A training course is expected to be realized byGLTN in the next few months.

Further to this it was highlighted that the definitions

of youth is clarified, as it seems there are a variety of

groups and a variety of actions.

One of the youth participant makes his remarks during the firstAfrica Youth Assembly that took place in Abuja, Nigeria 2011. UN-Habitat/Julius Mwelu



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The tramway service between

Rabat and Sal cities. The total

length of the dual-line tramway

network is 19.5 km, with 31 stops.

The mass transit system is expected

to bring many economic and social

benefits. The average daily ridership

on the tramway service is expected

to be 180,000 a day. Arne Hoel / World Bank


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Introduction

This session examined the global trends in sustainable urban

mobility and highlighted the role of urban youth in making

urban mobility more sustainable.

MODERATOR: Mr. Bernard Gyergyay

SPEAKERS

Prof. Karen Lucas,Oxford University,

Transport Studies Unit, United Kingdom (Did not attend)

Prof. Gina Porter,Durham University,

Anthropology Department, UK (Did not attend)

Mr. Prashanta Khanal,Clean Air Network, Nepal

(Did not attend presentation given in absentia)

Mr. Carlos Moreno,Fundacion Despacio, Colombia

Mr. Samuel Kavuma,Chairperson of the Uganda

National Youth Council (Did not attend)

Mr. Lorenzo Casullo,Steer Davies Gleave/UN-HabitatYouth Advisory Board, Europe

Mr. Tony Viterale,Mayor of Rofrano-Salerno

Mr. Carlos Moreno,Fundacion Despacio, noted that Public

spaces have an important link to urban mobility. He

described experiences in Columbia where footpaths in low

income areas and bicycle paths have created public spaces

and improved neighbourhoods; and in Ciclovia where streetsare closed on Sundays and Public Holidays, creating active

urban spaces

He highlighted the linkages between socio-economic

conditions and urban mobility. He further noted that, for

many young people in developing countries; a car is a dream

for many people equated to success and wellbeing. There

is increasing demand for cars in developing countries andpublic transport use declining. He emphasized the need to

challenge these social norms,so that young people do notaspire to own a car but are satisfied using pubic transport.Mr. Carlos Morenopresented the case of Medellin, wherepast and present mayors have invested in high quality public

spaces and urban mobility corridors in the city, including

electric escalators and cable cars in poor neighbourhoods to

enable access to employment and the city.

SESSION 10: Engaging Young People in Sustainable

Urban Mobility



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Mr. Prashanta Khanal, Clean Air Network, Nepal speaking

on urban transportation in Kathamandu noted that though

the cityused to be a walking city, it is now choked by

cars/motorbikes and cycling has become dangerous.He explained that some groups are promoting cycling but

noted that this alone was not enough. He advocated for an

integrated approach addressing transport safety as well as theneed to challenge social norms that look down uponcycling as a poor mans choice rather than smart mans choice

Mr. Lorenzo Casullo, Stear Davies Gleave/UN-Habitat

Youth Advisory Board, Europe explained that for youth in

Europe, the main concerns for mobility are affordability and

sustainability it is about what young people can afford and if

they can have positive environmental impact through mobilitychoices

London Olympics was presented as a case study ofpublic transport use. The Olympics used existing infrastructure

combined with a strong public campaign to get the public

to change habits. The majority of volunteers at the Olympics

were young people.

Emerging Issues Develop an integrated approach addressing transport

safety as well as challenge social norms that look down

uponcycling as a poor mans choice rather than smartmans choice

Current public transport patterns dont cater for young

people they are oriented towards commuters

Young people are limited in transport options because

they dont have access to funds

Participants at the prosperity of youth is prosperity of cities dialogue session Abuja, Nigeria 2011 UN-Habitat/Julius Mwelu

Public spaces are linked to transport and transport Develop a children and youth comprehensive approach


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Public spaces are linked to transport and transport

corridors can, if planned correctly, be part of the public

realm. Examples were cited from Bogota and Medellin

in Colombia

Public spaces have created opportunities for young

people and reduced other issues affecting young people

such as safety and crime.

Young people in developing countries often aspire to

own cars, which in turn is increasing the numbers of

cars on the streets.

Young people need sustainable mobility that allows

them to access job opportunities, education and take

part in social life of the city.

Recommendations

Place equity and fairness at the centre of development

strategies. Equity in the accessibility of public space and

public transport:

Develop sustainable mobility that is accessible and

inclusive for all and does not harm the environment

and its urban citizens. The facilities should encourage

walking and cycling

Proper land use planning that reduces the need to travel

by bringing functional spaces closer to each other.

Stakeholders need to acknowledge the role of youthin urban mobility by ensuring their full and effective

engagement in decision making processes at all levels.

A need to gradually shift away from cars by planning

public spaces and mobility spaces to change our

mobility choices

Develop a children and youth comprehensive approach.

Youth have the right to have a say in urban mobility

decision making

Policy makers should develop sustainable mobility

education and awareness programmes. Mobility should

be introduced in the school curriculum: explaining the

effect of choices to children

Non-motorized transport is environmentally sustainable and well suitedfor making short trips in most cities (London, UK) Alex Segre / Alamy



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UN-Habitat Executive Director,

Dr. Joan Clos gives his remarks during

the Youth 21 initiative in Nairobi, Kenya



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MODERATOR: Mr. Ravi Karkara, UN-Habitat

SPEAKERS:

Hon. Arvinn Eikeland Gadgil, State Secretary forInternational Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

Norway

Ms. Hanne Marte Furset, International Advisor,

Norwegian Children and Youth Council, Norway

Mr. Joao Felipe Scarpelini Former UN-Habitat Youth

Advisory Board, Brazil

Highlights of the discussionMr. Ravi Karkara,started the session with a quick overview

of the Youth 21 Initiative. He explained that, in 2011,

UN-Habitat with support from the Government of Norway

and the UN Inter-agency Network on Youth developed a

report titled Youth 21: Bui

world urban youth assembly 4

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